Looms with a stationary weft supply and a weft carrier with gripper

ABSTRACT

In a loom with a stationary weft supply and a weft carrier with gripper, the provision on the one hand of a detent, carried on the weft carrier, forcing the weft thread to be turned back around said detent between the portion of the thread drawn in the shed behind the weft carrier and the end of the thread locked in the gripper of the weft carrier and, on the other hand, of a holding gripper arranged on either side of the loom in the path of the said detent in order to seize the weft thread when it is released by the gripper of the carrier and of means to open said holding gripper after closure of the shed.

United States Patent [1 1 Fabre 51 Feb.20,1973

[54] LOOMS WITH A STATIONARY WEFT SUPPLY AND A WEFT CARRIER WITH GRIPPER [75] Inventor: [73] Assignee: Manta, Waasmunster, Belgium [22] Filed: May 28, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 147,932

Aim Fabre, Montalieu, France FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 89,490 5/1967 France ..l39/l25 Primary Examiner-Henry S. Jaudon Attorney-Sughrue, Rothwell, Mion, Zinn & Macpeak [57] ABSTRACT In a loom with a stationary weft supply and a weft carrier with gripper, the provision on the one hand of a detent, carried on the weft carrier, forcing the weft thread to be turned back around said detent between the portion of the thread drawn in the shed behind the weft carrier and the end of the thread locked in the gripper of the weft carrier and, on the other hand, of a holding gripper arranged on either side of the loom in the path of the said detent in order to seize the weft thread when it is released by the gripper of the carrier and of means to open said holding gripper after closure of the shed.

3 Claims, 1 1 Drawing Figures PATENTEU H5820 1975 3,717, 18 1 SHEET 1 OF 3 FIGJ PATENTEDFEBZOIHYS SHEET 3 OF 3 LOOMS WITH A STATIONARY WEFT SUPPLY AND A WEFT CARRIER WITH GRIPPER The present invention relates to looms with a stationary weft supply, of the kind in which successive weft threads or fillings are inserted in the shed by means of a weft carrier with gripper which is therefore often termed false shuttle or batten. In the subsequent description the term false shuttle will often be used.

In looms of the subject kind, the gripper of the weft carrier at the beginning of the throw seizes the filling separated, if need be, from the edge of the fabric by a suitable member. On reaching the other side of the loom, the gripper releases the filling thus drawn, matters being adjusted in such a manner that the length of the filling inserted in the shed shall be slightly in excess in order to prevent any eventual defective connection with the warp threads of the edge of the fabric. In practice, when using fillings without elasticity of their own, perfect weaving is achieved with a short and regular fringe of the ends projecting from the edges of the fabric. If need be, such ends may be easily folded back individually in the following shed in order to provide a woven selvedge, in the manner known in the art. Unfortunately, such is not the case when elastic, i.e., wiry fillings are used. Indeed, as soon as such a filling is released from the gripper of the false shuttle, it tends to curlup more or less on itself. The length of the projecting ends will therefore have to be exaggerated, the fringe moreover becoming irregular on account of the fact that such contraction is itself irregular, any possibility of direct manufacture of selvedges is prevented, and more particularly there is a risk that locking the weft thread will trap thread loops, thus causing objectionable defects.

It has been sought to overcome these disadvantages by arranging to close the shed early, so that when the gripper of the false shuttleopens, the filing is already held between the warp threads. But it is evidently not possible to proceed very far in this direction, as otherwise one runs the risk of the false shuttle being trapped before it has left the shed. It has also been proposed to open the gripper of the false shuttle only after the complete closure of the shed. This does indeed ensure the filling being kept taut until it shall be perfectly locked inbetween the warp threads, but as on crossing the latter, the false shuttle has to be mandatorily positioned outside the shed, the distance between. the gripper and the edge of the fabric is considerable and, consequently, the length of the projecting ends is quite excessive, both as regards the loss of material as well as the possibility of folding back each one of such ends in the following shed in order to provide a true selvedge.

The invention aims at implementing a device able to keep the filling taut after it shall have been released by the gripper of the weft carrier without it being required to provide projecting ends of excessive or irregular length.

The device according tothe invention comprises essentially a detent carried on the weft carrier in a location such that the weft thread shall be turned back around the said detent between the portion of the thread drawn in the shed behind the weft carrier and the end of the thread locked 'in the gripper of such carrier, a holding gripper being provided on either side of the loom, each of such holding grippers comprising two resilient locking arms and being normally positioned on the path of the detent on the arrival of the weft carrier on the side in question of the loom, so that it shall open when passing such detent and close subsequently so as to trap the portion of the weft thread drawn in the shed at the moment when the gripper of the weft carrier opens in order to release the said thread, means for opening the said holding gripper following the complete closure of the shed and means to prevent momentarily the action of such holding gripper on the new departure of the weft carrier from the side in question of the loom.

It will be appreciated that under such circumstances theweft thread released by the weft carrier is kept in the taut condition until the warp threads shall have completely closed around it, which rules out any possibility of loop formation in the shed. On the other hand, the holding gripper may be provided very close to the edge of the web of warp threads, so that it is possible to I adjust the loom in such a manner as to have only projecting ends of short length, such length being moreover very regular, as there is no longer any possibility of elastic contraction of the filling prior to the locking thereof.

The accompanying drawings, shown by way of example, will afford a better understanding of the invention, of the characteristics thereof and of the advantages it is likely to afford.

FIG. 1 is a perspective diagrammatical view, with parts broken away, of the essential parts of a conventional loom modified to include the features of the invention.

FIG. 2 shows a diagrammatic plan view of a weft carrier for a loom with a stationary weft supply, implementing the invention and of one of the grippers connected with the loom and mandatory for working the invention, the weft carrier being supposed travelling towards the right hand side of the loom.

FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view along line II-II of FIG. 2 of the weft carrier.

FIG. 4 shows a portion of FIG. 3 drawn to a larger scale.

FIG. 5 shows a plan view drawn to a larger scale of the weft carrier portion comprising the detent.

FIG. 6 shows a partial longitudinal sectional view along line V-V of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 shows an elevational view, partially in section and on a large scale of the holding gripper connected with the side in question of the loom.

FIG. 8 is a reproduction of FIG. 3, but showing the components at the moment when the holding gripper starts riding the detent of the false shuttle.

FIG. 9 corresponds to the moment when the stationary ramp opens up the false shuttle gripper.

FIG. 10 shows a sectional view of the holding gripper closed again after the passage of the diagrammatically shownweft carrier.

FIG. 11 shows a view similar to that of FIG. 10, but corresponding to the moment when the holding gripper is raised and opened.

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatical view of a conventional loom modified to include the features of the invention. The inventive features include the provision of elements for keeping the filling, that is the weft thread,

taut after it has been released by the gripper of the weft carrier. These elements include a modified weft carrier provided with a detent 9 located such that the weft thread 10 can be turned back around the detent 9 with the end of the thread locked in the carrier gripper in the form of jaws 3,5. Holding grippers 12 are provided on either side of the loom. These holding grippers open when the detent 9 of the weft carrier passes by and then closes so as to trap the portion of the weft thread drawn in the shed at the moment when the weft carrier gripper opens to release the weft thread. An arm 13 of the holding gripper 12 may be attached by a pivot 30 to the beam 31 of the batten. The movement of the arm 13 is controlled by a combined crank-main rod device 33 connected by a roller and a cam to the batten main shaft 32. Conventional means for supplying the weft, which is described in greater detail in German Pat. No. 1,710,319 of June 8, 1967, comprises needles 34 which extend in synchronism with the movement of the batten on the path of the weft carrier to present the needle eye in the zone marked by the cross (x) 20 in FIG. 3 when the weft carrier starts to enter the shed. As is well known in the art, the selected needle 34 remains in this extended position during at least the time of the passing of the weft carrier before the weft supplying means and permits the weft end brought by the needle into the zone 20, and extending thus perpendicularly to the path of the weft carrier, to be pinched by the jaws 3 of the weft carrier, whereby the thread is retained in the weft carrier as discussed in greater detail below.

The weft carrier or false shuttle shown in FIG. 2, comprises, in known manner, a main body 1 of elongated shape, with parallel longitudinal sides and with pointed ends suitable for being driven and guided on the guiding path of a loom with a stationary weft supply, in the manner of a conventional shuttle. Such body is integral with a laterally projecting base or sole plate 2 which extends in a manner of speaking from the bottom face thereof. The plate 2 is integral with a rib 3, which rises at a slant towards the body 1 (FIGS. 3 and 4),so as to provide the stationary jaw of the false shuttle gripper. Inside the body 1, laterally hollowed out for that purpose, as shown at la in FIG. 3, is provided the longitudinal joint 4 of a movable jaw 5 cooperating at 5' with the stationary jaw 3. Springs such as 6 urge such movable jaw 5 in order to apply-it against the stationary jaw. The jaw 5 is also integral with 'a control nose 7 directed upwards and fitted to be subjected to the action of ramps such as 8 provided on either side of the loom in order to ensure that the jaw opens at the right moment.

According to the invention, the base or sole plate 2 carries a vertical detent 9 which passes through an opening 5a provided in the movable jaw S. The detent comprises a central boss 9a which projects slightly with reference to the vertical wall 90 of the detent directed towards the jaws 5', 3 of the false shuttle this boss 9a terminates in a rounded off head 9d connected by a flat or follower 9b to the vertical wall 9c of the detent, directed towards the side of the body 1.

When the false shuttle starts, the movable jaw 5 is lowered by that of the ramps 8 positioned on the starting side of the loom. The filling 10 is fed by a filling feeding member within the zone of the false shuttle positioned between the detent 9 and the nose 7 close to the movable jaw 5. A cross 20 in FIG. 3 is used as a symbol to denote the spot where feeding the filling takes place. In this manner the filling 10 is threaded between the two jaws 3 and 5, as is well known in the art and in addition detent 9 meets the filling and compels it to wind itself thereon in order to provide around such detent a loop when reaching the fiat 9b. Consequently, the false shuttle reaches the other side of the loom (the right side for example) being fed in the manner shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 4 and 5. The filling 10 is gripped between the two jaws 3 and 5, while being wound around the detent 9. FIG. 3 is drawn assuming that the false shuttle is still in part inside the shed.

It will be noted in FIGS. 5 and 6 that on either side of the opening 50 in the longitudinal direction, the movable jaw 5 carries a kind of wedge 11, these two wedges being in alignment with the detent 9. The purpose of the wedges 11 is to guide the filling when it is fed to the false shuttle towards follower 9b of the detent and to open a holding gripper ahead of the detent, as will be seen below.

Quite close to the edge of the web of the warp threads and on either side of the loom is a holding gripper bearing the general numerical reference 12. As shown in the detail view of FIG. 7, this gripper is carried on an arm 13, which is able to move upwards at the required moment, for example when controlled by a suitable cam as illustrated in FIG. 1. The gripper 12 comprises a support 14 whereon are fastened to the upper ends of two resilient blades 15 downwardly directed, the bottom ends thereof carrying jaws 15a with diverging entries 15' and bottom edges 15a" curved back outwards. Each of the blades 15 comprises a zone 15b curved in direction of the other blade, such two zones being nearly in contacting relationship when the gripper is at rest and the two jaws 15a thereof are resiliently applied one against the other.

Within the portion comprised between-the support 13 and the two incurved zones 15b is fitted a spacing block 17 carried on an arm 18 permanently secured to the frame of the loom.

The working is as follows On the false shuttle reaching the side in question of the loom, the holding gripper 12 is fitted in such a manner that the contact plane of the jaws 15a thereof is substantially within the medium longitudinal plane of the detent 9 of the false shuttle (such plane being longitudinal with reference to the false shuttle but evidently transverse with reference to the loom), and at such a level that the apex of the wedge 11 positioned forward with reference to the direction of movement of such false shuttle may penetrate between the jaws 15a of thesaid holding gripper in order to spread them apart against the resilience of the blades 15. It may be considered that FIG. 3 corresponds to the moment when the front wedge 11 is only a very slight distance from the holding gripper 12.

The false shuttle proceeding along the path thereof, the jaws 15a of the holding gripper embrace the top portion of the detent 9 with the loop of the filling 10 wound thereon. In fact, the jaws 15a of the holding gripper come into contacting relationship with the vertical face of the boss 9a directed towards the jaws 3, 5' on the one hand and towards the opposite vertical face 9e of detent 9 on the other hand, which prevents any damage of the filling 10. This position corresponds to that depicted in FIG. 8.

When the gripper 12 comes in contact with the detent, the diverging entries 15a and the curved bottom edges 15a" insure that the portion of the weft between the detent 9 and the jaws 5',3 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, is pushed downward to some extent so that it remains and slides under the lower edge of the jaw 15a which is in contact with the boss 9a of the detent. The other jaw 15a which contacts the face 9e of the detent does not damage the weft 10, which during the time when the gripper 12 contacts the detent, remains on the flat 9b. When the jaws 15a leave the detent, they close and grip that portion of the weft which is substantially parallel to the path of the weft carrier. As the weft carrier jaws open, the weft thread slides around rounded off head 9d of the detent 9. Since when the jaws 15a close and grip the weft, weft carrier jaws 5', 3 have been opened, there is no danger of severing the weft end.

Nearly at the same moment the nose 7 of the movable jaw 5 of the false shuttle gripper is lowered by the stationary ramp 8 corresponding to the side considered of the loom. As a result the jaw 5 moves away from the stationary jaw 3 thus releasing the filling 10. This is the position depicted in FIG. 9.

The false shuttle proceeding along the path thereof, the holding gripper l2 closes behind the rear wedge 1 1, while holding the filling l0 locked between its jaws 150. This is what is shown in FIG. 10 which corresponds to a section through the medium plane of the holding gripper 12.

The filing 10 is thus held under tension by the holding gripper 12 for a sufficient length of time for the shed to close completely. At that moment, the arm 13 rises drawing along the gripper, whereas the spacing block 17 remains stationary. This relative movement between the gripper and the block has two consequences. In the first place the block withdraws the curved zones b from the blades 15 by thus opening the gripper and releasing the thread 10 (which presents no disadvantage as the latter is now gripped in the shed and is no longer able to curl upon itself). In the second place the jaws 15a of the holding jaw are brought to a higher level than that of the detent 9 of the false shuttle when liberating the path of such detent. This is shown in FIG. 11. As regards the filling 10, the free end thereof may be drawn by a suction device if need be and cut to the wanted precise length in the manner known in the art.

The false shuttle may then be freely driven from the side in question of the loom without any interference by the holding gripper. When it reaches the other side of the loom, the arm 13 drops and the operational cycle can be repeated.

The invention has thus made it possible to provide a device which holds the filling taut after it shall have been released by the gripper of the false shuttle until the moment when it is completely gripped in the shed. Thus, in the case of elastic i.e., wiry threads any buildup of defects in the fabric is prevented. On the other hand, as it is always possible to provide the holding gripper as close to the edge of the web of warp threads as need be, the invention makes it possible to achieve short and regular projecting ends well adapted to the im lementation of a woven selvedge.

t should be well understood that the above description has only been given by way of example and that it does not restrict the scope of the invention in any way without a change of described details of embodiment by any other equivalent ones entailing any departure therefrom. Thus the withdrawal of the gripper 12 at the start of the false shuttle could be implemented by a simple opening of the arms 15 of such gripper.

I claim 1. In a shuttleless loom provided with a weft carrier having a base plate, a stationary jaw integral with said base plate on the side thereof directed toward the shed and extending above said base plate, a vertically movable jaw arranged above said base plate, resilient means to urge said movable jaw against said stationary jaw; a nose means provided on said base plate upper face and ramp means positioned on either side of the loom to push on said nose means and open the jaw; a zone on the upper face of the movable jaw, between said nose means and said stationary jaw for inserting weft supplying means, the improvement which comprises,

a. a detent centrally mounted on said weft carrier between said stationary jaw and said zone for inserting the weft supplying means; said detent being carried by said weft carrier base plate and passing through an opening provided in the movable jaw; said detent having a central head connected by a flat to'that wall of the detent which is directed to the nose means of the weft carrier, and a holding gripper for the weft end provided on each side of the loom, above said weft carrier path and having two locking arms, lifting means to carry and to move said gripper locking arms onto and out of the path of said weft carrier detent, and stationary means to open said gripper locking arms when moved out of the path of said weft carrier detent, and said locking arms having diverging end portions on the entry side of the weft carrier.

2. In a shuttleless loom according to claim 1, the improvement which comprises wedges provided on either side respectively of the detent in the longitudinal direction with reference to the weft carrier path to guide the weft thread towards the flat of the detent.

3. In a shuttleless loom according to claim 2, the improvement wherein the arms of each gripper comprise an upper part, an intermediary part and a lower part, said arms being spaced one from the other along the upper part, converging towards one another along the intermediary part and being resiliently urged one against the other in the lower part, means to attach said upper part of the arms to said lifting means and a block means provided in between said converging parts of the arms in the lowered position thereof to open the gripper when said lifting means are moved upwards.

UNITED S-"TATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CURECTION Patent No. 3, 717, 181 Dated February 20, 1973 Inventor(s) Aime Fabre It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as 'shown below:

In The Heading:

. i The Priority Date was omitted. Should Read:

-- France May 29, 1970. 7O 19. 664-- Signed and sealed this 20th day of November 1973.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD mmmr'iifimfi. b; a a L Attesting Officer Acting qfiomiss'ioner of Patents USCOMM-DC 60376-P69 k U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINUNG OFFICF I969 0-365-334.

F ORM PO-105O (10-69) 

1. In a shuttleless loom provided with a weft carrier having a base plate, a stationary jaw integral with said base plate on the side thereof directed toward the shed and extending above said base plate, a vertically movable jaw arranged above said base plate, resilient means to urge said movable jaw against said stationary jaw; a nose means provided on said base plate upper face and ramp means positioned on either side of the loom to push on said nose means and open the jaw; a zone on the upper face of the movable jaw, between said nose means and said stationary jaw for inserting weft supplying means, the improvement which comprises, a. a detent centrally mounted on said weft carrier between said stationary jaw and said zone for inserting the weft supplying means; said detent being carried by said weft carrier base plate and passing through an opening provided in the movable jaw; said detent having a central head connected by a flat to that wall of the detent which is directed to the nose means of the weft carrier, b. and a holding gripper for the weft end provided on each side of the loom, above said weft carrier path and having two locking arms, lifting means to carry and to move said gripper locking arms onto and out of the path of said weft carrier detent, and stationary means to open said gripper lockIng arms when moved out of the path of said weft carrier detent, and said locking arms having diverging end portions on the entry side of the weft carrier.
 1. In a shuttleless loom provided with a weft carrier having a base plate, a stationary jaw integral with said base plate on the side thereof directed toward the shed and extending above said base plate, a vertically movable jaw arranged above said base plate, resilient means to urge said movable jaw against said stationary jaw; a nose means provided on said base plate upper face and ramp means positioned on either side of the loom to push on said nose means and open the jaw; a zone on the upper face of the movable jaw, between said nose means and said stationary jaw for inserting weft supplying means, the improvement which comprises, a. a detent centrally mounted on said weft carrier between said stationary jaw and said zone for inserting the weft supplying means; said detent being carried by said weft carrier base plate and passing through an opening provided in the movable jaw; said detent having a central head connected by a flat to that wall of the detent which is directed to the nose means of the weft carrier, b. and a holding gripper for the weft end provided on each side of the loom, above said weft carrier path and having two locking arms, lifting means to carry and to move said gripper locking arms onto and out of the path of said weft carrier detent, and stationary means to open said gripper lockIng arms when moved out of the path of said weft carrier detent, and said locking arms having diverging end portions on the entry side of the weft carrier.
 2. In a shuttleless loom according to claim 1, the improvement which comprises wedges provided on either side respectively of the detent in the longitudinal direction with reference to the weft carrier path to guide the weft thread towards the flat of the detent. 